Li Xiucheng was trapped in Quanjiao for more than a month and suffered endless hardships, so he sent a letter to all the garrison generals and all the generals and officials in the dynasty, and they all arranged to go to the accountant in Songyang, Anhui Province on a certain day.
On July 20, 1858, Chen Yucheng, Li Xiucheng, Li Shixian, Wei Jun, Wu Ruxiao, Huang Wenjin, Gong Deshu, Zhu Fengkui, Zhang Chaojue, Chen Decai, Li Zhaoshou and others all arrived in Songyang. Everyone discussed with each other for eight days, and each swore to be of one mind and made an agreement: each ministry would mobilize troops and generals to form two armies in the west and east, each led by Chen Yucheng and Li Xiucheng; the western army would attack Luzhou, open up northern Anhui, and unite The Eastern Army swept the Jiangbei camp, controlled the two rivers, and supported Tianjing.
Hong Xiu fully read the appointment and was very relieved, so he issued an edict: Meng En was promoted to the commander-in-chief of the central army and was in charge of the military affairs of the Kingdom of Heaven; Chen Yucheng was promoted to the commander-in-chief of the former army and was in charge of the command, and had overall control over the battle situation; Li Xiucheng was promoted to the commander-in-chief of the rear army and was the deputy commander; Li Shixian was promoted to the commander-in-chief of the left army; Wei Jun was promoted to the commander-in-chief of the right army.
Mondern said: The post of general can be relinquished at any time if the younger brother is not talented.
Xiuquan was in a trance for a while, woke up and said again: After all these years, one word can resist Jiuding! Now the years are passing by contentedly. In the Kingdom of Heaven today, there is only one person who believes in Meng Di. He is the backbone of the Kingdom of Heaven. The defense of Tianjing depends entirely on Di Meng. Shi Da opened his army and had a hundred thousand troops. He would rather work in Zhejiang and Fujian than help our heavenly kingdom. Is he afraid of this? Just now Heavenly Father came and said that in the home of the Kingdom of Heaven, rebellious sons emerge one after another, but now he only accepts three sons: me, Jesus, and Xiuqing! He also said that the wings would be defeated; and he assisted the Qing Dynasty in maneuvering the Fujian territory, killing monsters and subduing demons. His achievements were outstanding, and he could be the leader of the central army. What did Monty think?
Meng En said: Heavenly Father's voice will surely benefit the Kingdom of Heaven. The younger brother can step down from the post of general at any time; however, Chen and Li may secretly resent each other.
Xiuquan chuckled and said, "This is not like painting a cake to look at plum blossoms, nor is it two peaches and three scholars!" Only when brothers old and young work together can the Kingdom of Heaven be boosted. As for the appointment of the commander-in-chief of the Chinese army, special personnel must be dispatched to report to Yang Zhi in six directions.
Yang Fuqing was in Pucheng. He became his brother-in-law and became the commander-in-chief of the Chinese army. He was full of surprises and asked Yang Yiqing urgently: This situation is too complicated. What should we do?
Yang Yiqing said: Shiyi defeated Ganjiang once, then defeated Quzhou, and entered Fujian in panic, like a dog that lost its home; even if it is attached to it, its life will not be saved. He refused to do anything and left without saying goodbye, heading north to Jiangxi and Anhui, commanding the armies, attacking cities and territories, and supporting the Kingdom of Heaven.
Yang Fuqing said: "What if Shi Ruo forced him to stay?"
Yang Yiqing said: If Shi is strong, I will be strong; we will fall apart and forget each other! The King of Heaven felt at ease knowing this.
Yang Fuqing said: I am weak, and I will judge myself for the enemy who is not the Yijun. If I mistakenly fight against each other in the same room, if I am not eliminated, both sides will lose. Yidian's kindness is beyond this. My order: In the Fujian area occupied by my unit, only Pucheng is left, which will be given to Shiyi; the rest of Songxi, Zhenghe, Jianyang, Shaowu, etc. will be abandoned and will go north to southern Jiangxi immediately to support the Kingdom of Heaven.
Yang Yiqing said: Shaowu Duo Shiyi's old tribe may not listen to the tune.
Yang Fuqing said: "Xian Yu tells me, whether you want to go or stay, please do as you please."
When Yang Fu went to the north of the Qing Dynasty, Zhang Suimou was not angry and used troops by force, causing a small rebellion. Shi Da opened the way and said: "Assisting the Northern Judgment of the Qing Dynasty and killing the demons of the Qing Dynasty is not rebellion. We are brothers in the Kingdom of Heaven, so let him go."
Shi Zhenji said: "We are still brothers in the Kingdom of Heaven, but Hong Xiuquan has removed us from the list. From then on, the surname Shi is no longer the national clan." Now that things have come to this, why not stand out from the crowd? If you are destined to die in life, why don't you want to be an emperor? My brothers and I will fight to the death to open up new territories for you!
Zhang Suimou said: "This is Hong Xiuquan's strategy to alienate people. Hong is already unkind, so Yidian must not be righteous again."
Shi Dakai said: Don't worry about fame, just kill demons and serve the Kingdom of Heaven.
Shi Zhenji said: In this case, there are interceptions in front and pursuers behind, so we must make plans in advance.
Shi Da opened the way: attack nearby counties and counties first, connect the land into a large area, rest for a while, and then decide where to go.
On August 16, 1858, Shi Da sent troops to besiege Songxi and Zhenghe; two days later, he withdrew the siege and attacked Chong'an, Shuiji, and Jianyang in the west. Within half a month, they defeated them one by one.
Qing Duan, the governor of Fujian, urgently consulted Zhou Tianshou: Shuiji is a town with a wide area and is an important waterway in Fujian Province. If this is lost, the bandits will spread to northern Fujian. If the Taiwanese army enters Fujian, please spare no effort to raise troops as soon as possible. Destroy this rebellion.
Northern Fujian was in danger, and Emperor Xianfeng also ordered Zeng Guofan to quickly move his troops to aid Zhejiang and attack Chong'an from Qianshan.
After receiving the advice, Zhou Tian, together with his brother Zhou Tianpei, the commander-in-chief of Heli Town, guerrilla Dai Qingwu, and Pucheng magistrate Zhang Quanqing, divided their troops into four groups and besieged Pucheng. The two armies fought for half a day, and the Taiping army broke through the west gate and retreated from the city.
Zhou Tian was overjoyed and immediately ordered his troops to pursue him. Within half a month, all the lost territory in northern Fujian was recovered except for Shaowu.
Shi Dakai was defeated repeatedly in battles, and his subordinates became distraught.
On August 30, Prime Minister Hu Qi led 6,000 troops and left without saying goodbye. On September 12, Yang Zaitian led 10,000 troops, left Fujian and entered Jiangxi, heading straight for Jingdezhen. Not long after, Lin Caixin, commander of the Citi Army, led more than 10,000 troops and entered Xincheng County in Jiangxi Province. Dakai's cousin Shi Zhenji also refused to listen and formed an army without authorization and advanced into southwestern Fujian.
Zhang Suimou said: This situation cannot be extended any longer, and the Wing Palace must quickly decide where to go.
Shi Da opened the way: According to his brother's wishes, we will enter southern Jiangxi from the north, Xiangchu from the west, and then enter Sichuan nearby.
On September 14, 1858, Zeng Guofan, together with Zhang Yunlan, Zhu Pinlong, and Wu Guozuo's armies, arrived at the mouth of Jianchang River and killed Hu Qixiang's army nearby.
Zhang Yunlan was eager to enter Fujian, but Zeng Guofan did not allow it. He said: After passing through Fuzhou, Jianchang and Jingde will be connected with Ji'an and Linjiang, and wait for the thieves to come.
On that day, Zeng Guofan reported: According to Jiujiang Road Shen Baozhen and Candidate Road Li Yuandu's report, according to the confessions of the thieves, the puppet emperors Yang Fuqing and Shi Ni led a band of more than 100,000 thieves. Yang Ni first occupied Pucheng, and Shi Ni came from Qu, After being defeated, he fled to Fujian and invaded Tingjian and other counties. In May of this year, Yang Ni still pretended to be Yang Xiuqing and called himself the East Palace. Shi Ni was jealous of him and started to kill each other. Yang Ni then abandoned Pucheng with 60,000 to 70,000 thieves, harassed Guangfeng and Yushan, and went their separate ways. There are still 70,000 to 80,000 people in Shi Ni, who are entrenched in various tribes in Fujian Province. They are running like wolves and hogs, and their direction cannot be measured.
In mid-October, Shi Dakai led his army to attack Ruijin in southern Jiangxi. He rested for three days and divided his troops into four attacks.
Qiling, the governor of Jiangxi Province, thought that there were no troops to mobilize due to the thorns in southern Jiangxi, so he consulted with Zeng Guofan to mobilize troops for rescue.
Zeng Guofan refused, and wrote: "The thieves in southern Jiangxi are still numerous in number, but there are few brave ones. They cannot be dealt with by a foreign army. Only the troops of the province, supplemented by regiment training, can Xu Qi be successful."
Emperor Xianfeng issued an edict: Shi Ni is really a thieves, and can be destroyed by non-local regiments. The minister is responsible for coordinating the overall situation of Anhui Province. It is not necessary to go north today. When the south road is slightly loosened, he will go to the junction of Anhui and Chu to make overall arrangements.
The vassal vassal had no choice but to temporarily station in Jianchang.
Emperor Xianfeng issued another edict: Shi Ni was abusing Zhejiang, and the people of Zhejiang impeached Yan Duan for poor handling of the letter and weak resistance. He Gui, the governor of Liangjiang, investigated and dealt with it, and Hu Xingren temporarily acted as governor of Zhejiang. The thieves are becoming more and more powerful, and they are no longer monolithic. There was Seng Gelinqin in front of him, who recruited Zhan Qilun's troops to surrender. Zhan Chen led Mao Yong to the south and made many gains. Guanwen, Hu Linyi, Shengbao, Hechun, Zeng Guofan, etc. should also watch their actions and recruit rebels; the way to fight is not to kill decisively and cause rivers of blood; to subjugate the enemy's soldiers without fighting, no lives will be slaughtered. There is no great good.
When Hu Xingren was appointed governor, Zuo Zongtang was dissatisfied, and he complained to Zeng Guofan: "Brother, I am a first-class official in the Zhejiang Suppression Campaign, and can supervise an army of 40,000 people. We will arrive in two months. Is this a quick trip?" Zhejiang and Fu are useless, but Nanke is a dream! Hu Xingren's qualifications were mediocre, he did many things but did little, and Luo Fu once impeached him; he was assigned to Zhejiang, and Suzhou and Hangzhou were empty!
Zeng Guofan also blamed himself: My nature is so slow!
